Kii Journeys - Walks & Talks on the Kii Peninsula of Japan

14/05/2022

More about Shugendo and Yoshinoyama (Mount Yoshino) in my article for All About Japan:

Visit this isolated village in central Japan for a glimpse of Japan's ancient ascetic traditions that are still being practiced today.

14/05/2022

Yoshinoyama (Mount Yoshino) - Where cherry blossoms meet spirituality, my article on the JNTO UK blog looks into why visiting Yoshinoyama outside of sakura season can lead to interesting discoveries. Did you know that cherry blossoms in Yoshino and the ancient spiritual tradition of Shugendo, still practiced around Yoshinoyama today, are linked?



Find out more here:

Mount Yoshino: Where cherry blossoms meet spirituality May 4, 2022 Alena Eckelmann The hills around Mount Yoshino are covered in pink from blooming sakura in early April each year. Photo credit: Alena Eckelmann Widely known as Kansai’s number one cherry blossom spot, Yoshinoyama, or Mount Yoshino,...

13/05/2022

Nachi Fall in Kumano in May in the early morning. No other visitors yet. ,

13/05/2022

Kites and crows circle around over Oyunohara in Hongu Town, a scene that can he witnessed often here.

08/05/2022

Satoyama Hike & Bike in May @ Kii Monogatari! Explore Kumano Beyond the Kodo. I love this place where I live and I hope to guide you around here soon…

18/04/2022

Akame, an valley with many waterfalls in Mie Prefecture of Japan, was a training place for followers of Shugendo, a spiritual tradition unique to Japan. Today this area offers scenic day hikes, and in summer it is possible to experience an eco-tour that takes you to one of the falls for a waterfall mediation experience. Read more in my article here. How about it?

Combining nature appreciation with spiritual experiences on your holiday is emerging as a post-Corona trend. Visitors to Japan who seek “nature & spirit” adventure travel should join a waterfall hike and mediation tour at Akame Falls, one of Mie Prefecture's most scenic spot

11/03/2022

Being a local of the Kumano area, I hope for regenerative tourism with a positive impact on this destination through deepening connections with locals and communities in this destination.

Go slow, stay longer, support locally, this is my advice to cyclists. Don’t just pass through but stop and engage.

Here is my report from DAY 4 of this 4-day cycling trip sponsored by the MOE and with rental e-bikes from KMICH.

Starting in Kurisugawa, we followed yet another river, this time the Tonda River, on fairly flat terrain. The National Road 311 follows the river and leads all the way to Kamitonda, the starting point of this 230 km Kumaichi cycling route.

The Nakahechi route of the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage trail, connecting Tanabe City with Hongu Town, runs on the ridges of the mountains that follow the river.

Our hill climb on this day took us up to the Takahara Settlement and the Takahara Kumano Shrine located on this Nakahechi route. Takahara is also called the “village in the clouds” because in the morning one can see the mist in the valley below.

One of the Kumano area’s celebrities is Kumagusu Minakata, a naturalist and ethnologist, who campaigned against the shrine consolidation during the Meiji Era and thereby helped to preserve shrine forests with grand old trees, such as the Takahara Kumano Shrine surrounded by majestic old camphor trees.

Other such places are Takijiri-oji, a small shrine set in a forest, where most Kumano Kodo walkers start their journey in direction of Hongu, and the Inabane-oji where we stopped to pay homage to the Kumano deities before we finished our journey and cycled back to KMICH cycling station.

Note: Cycling is prohibited along the Kumano Kodo routes as they are a designated World Heritage Site.

At the core of the local economy in this fairly remote part of Japan are the Michi no Eki roadside stations. They are key points for cyclists (we passed through 5 in 2 days) offering rest and refreshment in an area that has no 24/7 convenience stores over a distance of 100 km.

Villagers bring their fresh produce straight from their fields and orchards, small businesses sell their unique local products and artisans their handcrafted items, the latter two being ideal souvenirs to take home or give as a present. Come in and check it out!

Encouraging cyclists to support the local economy and thereby keep the Yoshino-Kumano National Park alive, I recommend “stopping & shopping” at these local roadside stations and at farmers’ stalls as well as at local cafes and public hot springs.

There were many delicious local foods that we savored on this journey, including mehari sushi on-the-go, also ideal for vegetarians and vegans; Kumano Beef, the local wagyu, for meat lovers, and tuna sashimi for seafood enthusiasts.

The area is also famous for its citrus fruits. Various types of mikan are available fresh year-round, or as juice or jelly, as well as yuzu and jabala juices, which are two other types of citrus fruits.

Here is a Youtube Video of our Kumaichi cycling adventure!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-75ymkaARQ

Please visit us in Kumano and enjoy a cycling trip with us!

10/03/2022

Cyclists on the Kumaichi cycling route have ample opportunity to admire the fascinating geological sites of the Nanki Kumano Geopark, whose location partly overlaps with the Yoshino-Kumano National Park. Apart from cycling, there is a wealth of outdoor activities to experience.

Here is my report from DAY 3 of this 4-day cycling trip sponsored by the MOE and with rental e-bikes from KMICH.

We cycled a short distance from our accommodation at Kawayu Onsen, one of three hot spring villages that are located near Hongu Town. Each of the villages has its own flair but the main attractions are the hot spring pools, either at the accommodations or the public hot spring.

Upon arrival in Hongu, we left our bikes behind and walked a part of the Kumano Kodo trail from Hosshinmon-oji in the forest back to the serene Kumano Hongu Taisha. Oji refers to small shrines that are considered “child” shrines of the Three Kumano Grand Shrines.

This route passes through Hosshinmon Village and abandoned Mizunomi-oji settlement before reaching Fushiogami Village, where I have been living for over ten years now. Needless to say, I love this place!

Fushiogami is a typical satoyama village. Houses, paddy fields and gardens are surrounded by forest. There are also many tea plantations in Fushiogami where villagers harvest tea in May each year. The tea is sold at the way-side stalls as Otonashi Tea. Otonashi, a tributary of the Kumano River, flows through the forest near Fushiogami.

Fushiogami Village is located at an elevation of about 200 meters and it has been there since pilgrims from Kyoto walked the Kumano Kodo during the Heian Era of Japanese history. A story concerning a famous female poet of that area that happened at the Fushiogami-oji is a testimonial that this village has been travelled through for centuries.

At the end of the day, we rode our bicycles again. A hill climb took us from Hongu across to Yunomine Onsen, a quaint hot spring village that claims to be one of the oldest hot springs in Japan, apparently having first been discovered 1,800 years ago.

Lovers of quirky hot spring entertainment will enjoy bathing in the Tsuboyu, the tiniest but hottest spring in Yunomine Onsen, or sitting in a small hot spring pool that you dig out for yourself in a riverbed at Kawayu Onsen. The third hot spring near Hongu, Wataze Onsen, boast the largest rotenburo in Western Japan!

Staying at one of these hot spring villages gives cyclists the opportunity to relax their tired legs in the hot water while reminiscing about their wonderful cycling journey.

Stay tuned for the final Day 4 report of this Kumaichi cycling adventure, and a video of our cycling adventure!

09/03/2022

The Kumaichi cycling route runs around the southern part of the Kii Peninsula which is also part of the Yoshino-Kumano National Park. This 60,000 ha large park was established in 1936 amongst the second group of National Parks in Japan.

Here is my report from DAY 2 of this 4-day cycling trip sponsored by the MOE and with rental e-bikes from KMICH.

Located in this national park are the Kumano Sanzan, the Three Grand Shrines of Kumano and the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage trails that connect them. Both the shrines and the trails were inscribed as part of the World Heritage Site in 2004.

We left Shingu City behind and cycled 40 km inland towards Hongu Town, the location of the Kumano Hongu Taisha, by following the Kumano River. The scenery changes immediately after passing through a tunnel: from a cityscape to the sweeping views of the Kumano River with steep mountains on either side.

These mountains did not worry us much as we followed the valley on fairly flat terrain. The spring of this river lies in the Omine Mountains near Yoshino from where it flows over 180 km south into the Kumano-nada Sea where Shingu City is now located.
Our first hill climb for the day followed a forestry road away from the river and uphill until we reached a spot with a panoramic view of the Hanajiro Waterfall.

Next we moved to remote Kitayama Village where we had fun walking across a suspension bridge. There are many suspension bridges across the rivers in this part of Japan, which are still being used by the locals.

Our destination for the day was the Doro-kyo Gorge, a 31 km long ravine formed by millions of years of erosion by the Kitayama River. This area is one of the most strictly preserved areas in the Yoshino-Kumano National Park as a “Special Protection Zone”. The forested steep cliffs and large boulders in the riverbed set the emerald-green waters of the river perfectly into scene.

We visited one part of the Doro-kyo Gorge called Doro-Haccho where a Taisho Era Ryokan overlooks the river and where visitors can enjoy a tour through the ravine in a small wooden boat in summer. Right in the middle of Doro-Haccho is the meeting point of three prefecture borders. This is the prefecture triangle of Wakayama, Nara and Mie!

The stunning views of this ravine will satisfy Japan Travel first-timers and repeaters alike as they are evidence of an ecological history that goes back millions of years. Being located in the national park as well as the geo-park, this unique natural environment is being protected and preserved for future generations.

The interplay of nature and local community becomes “experience-able” here. We joined a local of Kitayama who took us on a walk along an almost forgotten raftsmen’s trail that started from the Doro-Haccho. In the old days, Kitayama’s raftsmen shipped lumber down the Kitayama River and all the way to Shingu by the ocean.

I will surely be back in the warmer season for an exciting water activity that is reminiscent of these raftsmen: log rafting! This can only be experienced here in Kitayama! I also want to top up with white-water rafting and canyoning thereby supporting the local economy.

Stay tuned for Day 3 report of this Kumaichi cycling adventure!

08/03/2022

Experience riding an e-bike on the 230 km Kumaichi cycling route in the south of Wakayama Prefecture!

This scenic loop ride is ideal for active travelers and nature enthusiasts, be they inbound visitors or residents of Japan who want to experience Japan from the back of a bicycle.

Here is my report from DAY 1 of this 4-day cycling trip with rental e-bikes from KMICH.

We cycled through the former castle town of Shingu on the eastern coast of the Kii Peninsula at a leisurely pace and hopped off the bikes to explore various historical sights. Our first stop was the Kamikura Shrine, once said to have been a place of nature worship and later used for ascetic training by mountain monks. You soon realize why when you try to navigate the 500 steep stone steps leading to the Gotobiki Iwa, a massive rock protruding from a cliff overlooking Shingu and the Pacific Ocean. Legend has it that the Kumano deities descended here first, then a new shrine (or shingu in Japanese) was built, which gave the city its name.

We continued cycling the backstreets to meet one of these Kumano deities called Hayatama, venerated at the Kumano Hayatama Taisha and equated with the Medicinal Buddha in Kumano’s unique syncretic faith that combines Shintoism with Buddhism. Huge old Magnolia compressa trees surround the vermillion-red shrine buildings and the leaves of a 1,000 year old Sacred Nagi (broadleaf podocarpus) are sought after as protective charms.

Our last stop was the remains of Shingu Castle, located on top of Mount Tankaku, a hill by the mouth of the Kumano River into the Pacific Ocean. Standing up there, you can realize the important strategic position this castle held during the Edo Period of Japan. All that remains today are the massive stone walls of the castle’s base, a feast of stonemasonry that will excite fans of Japanese castles.

Stay tuned for the Day 2 report of this Kumaichi cycling adventure!

07/03/2022

The Kumaichi is a new cycling route in Wakayama Prefecture of Japan! After cycling the Shimanami Kaido across the Seto Inland Sea and the Biwaichi around Lake Biwa, where next for a cycling trip in Japan?

Make your way to the south of the Kii Peninsula and cycle the Kumaichi, a newly established scenic loop ride of 230 km through the southern part of the Yoshino-Kumano National Park, or “Yoshi-Kuma” for short.

Rental e-bikes (mountain bike model) from KMICH local cycle station located in Kamitonda Town, as known Kuchikumano, the gateway to the Kumano area, offer the comfort of climbing the Kii Peninsula’s hills almost effortlessly but also give you a sporty edge and let you fly past Kumano’s panoramic vistas.

The whole circuit can be split in 3 parts of roughly 80 km each in length.

Part 1 takes you from Kamitonda to the Shirahama, Susami, and Kushimoto areas, all along the coast of the Pacific Ocean.
Part 2 continues along the coast from Kushimoto to Katsuura where the trail cuts into the mountains to the Nachi area, and ends in Shingu City.
Part 3 I had the good fortune to cycle together with a group of bike enthusiasts on a 4-day trip sponsored by the Ministry of the Environment, Government of Japan (hereafter, the MOE).

We started with a gentle and short ride around Shingu City (day 1). Then we followed the scenic Kumano River to Hongu Town with a short hill climb to Hanajiro Waterfall and later we hopped off the bikes and walked an old mountain trail (day 2). We walked a stretch of the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage trail (day 3). Finally we cycled along Tonda River and climbed up to Takahara Settlement, also on the Kumano Kodo, before making our way back to Kamitonda (day 4).

Stay tuned for a day-by-day report of this Kumaichi cycling adventure!

13/02/2022

I talked to local community members Todd Van Horne and Giovanni Dal about their projects and challenges in rural Wakayama. They are a great inspiration for me!

Are you fed up with a company job or living in Tokyo? These folks found their way in the deep south of the Kii Peninsula.